Affairs & Atonements Page 16

  The man swallowed awkwardly, his eyes roaming between Ashton and Christy, obviously trying to internally resolve the status of their relationship.

  “Oh, um… I’m sorry,” Gary replied with slight embarrassment. “I assumed you were married because of the same family name.”

  “No need to be,” Ashton said quickly, giving his hand out to shake. “We’re most certainly married and we have one son, JR. He’s ten and I’m sure he will be hankering to travel to Atlanta once he hears of the tree-top adventure park you’ve created on your property. I’m afraid he’s going to be begging us to have one built on ours as well.”

  The man laughed, easing that momentary tension. “Well, if you have the means and the land, then why not? It’s always a hit with the families. Just remember to credit me with the idea.” He winked cheekily at them.

  *****

  She moved his hand from her waist as she quickened her pace towards her door.

  “You can drop the act now, Ashton,” she uttered, pulling her keycard hastily from her bag. “There’s no one here to watch us.”

  “It wasn’t an act,” he said, pulling her back to him by the elbows.

  “I don’t care. Just don’t touch me,” she said, trying to pull away from him. Instead, he held her tightly to himself.

  “And why not? You didn’t object all night.”

  “Wasn’t that the idea? Keeping an appearance as if all was well in Neverland?” She writhed in his arms, trying to shake him off her.

  “I’ve had enough of your running away,” he said curtly. “Why don’t you stop?”

  “Really Ashton, you surprise me. In spite of all your education and high-flying job, you really don’t get it, do you? I don’t want you.”

  “Yes, you do.”

  “I don’t.”

  “You do. And I can prove it.”

  His mouth came down hard on hers. She resisted, pushing her elbows between them, but he cupped her buttocks, tugging her against him, rubbing his hard arousal against her crotch.

  It was all she needed as she let out a soft moan. She widened her mouth, letting him slip his tongue into her.

  “Christy, the door.” He breathed hoarsely against her ear. “Or I’ll have to take you here.”

  She fumbled with the keycard, finally slipping it into the lock after a couple of failed attempts.

  They stumbled into the room together, his hands frantically working its way under her dress.

  “Ashton,” she started, holding him back.

  “Don’t tell me to stop,” he begged. “It’s been hard enough these last two days.” He stopped, trying to catch his breath. “I just want to be with you.”

  “And I do too.” She kissed him lightly on his lips. “But I can’t continue on like this knowing you’re getting married to someone else. You don’t belong to me, Ashton.”

  He rested his head against hers, exhausted from his internal struggle and frustrations.

  “I met Naomi three years ago,” he said slowly. “My company had signed her on to do an advertisement.”

  “Ashton, you don’t have to tell me this.”

  “Yes, I do,” he said, letting her go and walking away to the bar to pour himself a drink. “I’ve never had a proper relationship. Not once since you left. I had been too busy looking for you; I never bothered to invest in one. And then one day, Naomi walked into my life. She was there for me each time I needed her. We grew close slowly… very slowly. We started sleeping together not because we loved each other, but more because we were two lonely people trying to keep each other company. One day, she suggested taking it a little further. A temporary engagement, she had suggested. Just a month’s trial- to see how we liked it.” He gulped down his drink of whiskey. “I went along with it. She had said if it didn’t work out, we could always end it without any hassle. It felt safe. It felt good knowing there was someone waiting for me at the end of my day. It was comfortable. A month turned into two and then into three, and soon we were a year engaged.” He sighed. “I thought Naomi had unfairly waited long enough and I wanted to honor her with a marriage. Four months ago, we finally decided we were going to take the plunge and marry by the end of this year.” He glanced up at her. “It wasn’t love, Christy. It was fear that no one would ever want me after hearing what I did to you. I was disgusted with myself. I was ashamed. So when Naomi agreed to marry me, I accepted readily because I thought that was the most a man like me could ever have. But you were the one I’ve always loved. I didn’t realize it though until I met you again.” He reached out for her face, curling the little hairs framing it around his finger. “And now all I can think of is you. And how much I want you. And how great it would be if we could be a real family with JR.”

  She tip-toed and kissed him lightly on his lips. “Me too. I love you, Ashton Pryor.”

  He wound his arms around the small of her back and possessed her mouth with fervor. His tongue delved and warred with hers, sending sensational tingles up her spine. His hands fiddled with the zipper of her dress, running it down and then lifting the garment off her. He cupped her breasts from under her bra, feeling her heat warm his hands. She groaned; eager to rid him off his clothes as well.

  Naked now, every inch of her at the scrutiny of her husband, she withdrew from him and stumbled back shyly onto the bed.

  “Don’t look at me like that,” she muttered, reddening with embarrassment.

  “Why not? You are perfect,” he mumbled back, coming down slowly above her.

  “I am not. I have ugly stretch marks from my pregnancy and this little roll of fat on my hips won’t go away…”

  He glanced down at where she was pointing and kissed her on her waist. “Any other man might think that. But these, right here are the stripes you earned for giving birth to my child. Our child, Christy.” He ran his lips delicately over them and she moaned. “They tell a story of birth and I am proud of them. They are beautiful. And I care goddamned nothing what any man thinks of them, because first of all, they evidence the existence of my child. And second, there is no way I’m gonna let you bare yourself to another man.”

  “Where’d you learn to talk like that?” She breathed harshly, her body trembling under his touch.

  He smiled and worked his way quietly down to her sex. He parted her labia, stroking her slit. “Do you have any further doubts before I begin worshipping you?”

  “Oh god, Ashton,” she groaned, spreading her legs further apart at a simple flick of his tongue on her clit.

  He draped her legs over his shoulders as he began to finger and caress her womanhood.

  She writhed and moaned, until she begged him to relieve her off his pleasured torture. He complied, only because he was as hard as a rock himself.

  He pressed the pad of his thumb against her clitoris as he slowly entered her. He sat on his knees, positioning himself carefully so he could watch himself thrust into her.

  He slithered smoothly into her wetness and immediately she let out a small cry of ecstasy. He moved in and out of her, speeding up slowly and gradually until he couldn’t hold back anymore. His thrusts turned savage as he drove into her hard and fast, culminating in one long spasm sweeping through their unified bodies.

  *****

  She lay on the curve of his neck as he stroked her bare shoulders. Spent and tired, they lay quietly for a long time, enjoying the feel of their warmth and skin against each other.

  “I’m going to tell Naomi when I get back to Philly,” he said slowly, breaking their long silence.

  She raised her head with surprise. Why though, did she react like that? It was what she wanted after all. But to hear him utter those words aloud upset her slightly. Perhaps because she was a woman and she understood how it felt when a relationship died.

  “I’m sorry,” she mumbled. Was there any more she could say to unburden the guilt she was feeling? “She sounds like a wonderful person.”

  “She is,” he said, playing with her hair. “She doesn’t deserve t
his. But I think it would be more unfair if I stayed. I’d just make her, you and me all miserable. She also deserves to be loved. And I can’t give her that. Not when I know now that my heart has always belonged to you, Christy.”

  She caressed the corners of his lips. They were soft but slightly parched. And all she wanted was to mush hers against his to wet them, to revive them.

  “But how do I tell her, Christy?” he asked, his pain obvious in his eyes. “How does anyone tell someone they’ve spent several years with that she had wasted her precious life on him?”

  “I don’t think there is ever an easy way. It’s hurt you can’t avoid.”

  He sighed. “If only there was a way…”

  “What was it about her you liked?” she asked curiously. She was diving into dangerous territories, but she just had to find out why he had been attracted to her. “She must be beautiful. After all, she is a model.”

  He hugged her more tightly to himself. “Yes, partly because of that. But when you spend three years with a person, physical beauty isn’t what keeps you together. That funnily fades away and you begin dealing with your partner’s true, inner self. And Naomi wasn’t hard to live with. She’s bubbly, adventurous, and sociable. She’s perfect for the man who wants to enjoy a very pleasurable life.”

  She grew quiet. “So why do you love me then?” She closed her eyes. She shouldn’t have asked him about Naomi. Now, she was comparing. And what if she didn’t like his answer? She had certainly dug herself into a hole.

  “Do you remember when it was when we first met? I was sixteen years old and you were a year younger. I still remember the little strap lavender dress you wore with pockets in the front of your skirts. You looked terribly cute and I think I fell in love with you instantly.”

  “You never showed it.”

  “I didn’t and I had good reason not to. Linda didn’t like that you had joined the family and she was extremely upset with Marshall. I wanted to show her my loyalty and kept my feelings to myself. Although, I never stopped dreaming that things might change one day so I could take you out on a proper date. But then, when you went out on that date with that Brendan guy, it messed me up so bad. I saw you walk away with him with his hands over your shoulders as if you belonged to him, and it drove me mad.” He rolled her over on her back as he looked down onto her face. “Here I was, waiting for you to grow up, and then this Brendan Croydon comes along and sweeps you from right under me.”

  “Is that why you followed me to the restaurant?”

  He grinned. “What else could I do? I was green as a goblin.”

  She bit her lip, unconsciously drawing swirls with her finger on his torso. “That doesn’t explain why you love me.”

  “Do you really need a reason?” He rasped against her cheek.

  “I’m not sure I can live without one since you gave a pretty compelling reason for your attraction to Naomi.”

  “My heart beats fast every time I’m close to you. And when you’re not with me, I can’t do much else but think about you. That’s how it had been all these years and that’s how it is now. Christy, you challenge me to make me a better person. I don’t want to just have fun all my life. I want it to be meaningful. I want to have a purpose. A reason, a drive to live, to breathe. And you are the only one who has ever given me that.” He kissed her neck. “You’re everything I want in a woman. You’re beautiful, you’re intelligent; you’re kind. And you’re the mother of my child. You’re my wife, Christy.”

  She cupped her face and looked cheekily into his eyes. “Well, you do have a way with words. You just won me over again.”

  “Yeah?” He smiled, his erection growing hard and jabbing into the slits of her core.

  “Is that how you’ve been winning your women?”

  “No one has ever captured my heart.” He teased back. He played with the lobes of her ear. “What about Chad? Are you going to tell him about us?”

  “We’ve been dating and haven’t taken it too far into the relationship. I don’t think he would be quite heartbroken when I do tell him.”

  “And when is that?”

  She grinned. “Oh, so now who’s the impatient one to get the word out?”

  He pinned her hands above her head. “Has there been anyone other than Chad?”

  She writhed under him. “Tons.”

  He stiffened, his eyes piercing into hers. “Don’t tease me, Christy.”

  She loosened her body, her eyes softening as she looked adoringly into his. “Two, excluding Chad, but they lasted three months at most. I couldn’t help comparing them to you. And for some reason or the other, they always fell short.”

  “Really?” He sneered with obvious satisfaction. “Not even the handyman?”

  “Come to think of it, I am fucking my handyman.” She grinned.

  His hands moved down to her sex, caressing her, parting the lips of her labia and moving inside deep into her.

  She moaned, arching her back as she grew wet, her juices dripping onto his fingers.

  He took her nipple into his mouth, caressing it and tingling it with his tongue. “I didn’t bring my tool box, Mrs Pryor,” he mumbled. “I’m sorry, but this is the only tool I’ll have to do you with for now.” He rubbed the tip of his erection against her clitoris and she clasped onto his hair as she writhed uncontrollably under him.

  He finally rolled onto his back, taking her with him. “I want to watch you ride me, Mrs Pryor.”

  She happily straddled him, guiding his cock into her. She felt his thick, hard length slip easily into her wetness as she took him deep into her.

  CHAPTER 18

  They clasped their hands together as the cab turned into the driveway of the lodge.

  “Can I move in with you?” He necked her in the backseat.

  “What will we tell Margaret and JR?”

  “The truth. That we’re together.”

  “You have only a couple more days before you leave. Do you think it would be wise to drop something like that now? Perhaps, we should wait until you visit us next.”

  “Please, let me move in with you.” He kissed her neck down to her bosom. “You won’t regret it, I promise.”

  She chuckled from the tingles he was giving her. She slapped him lightly on the arm when she noticed the driver give them a short glance in his rear view mirror. “Ashton, stop it.”

  “I can’t bear to take my stuff back up to the lodge again. Come on, Christy, you’re killing me.”

  “Fine.” She laughed. “But let us tell them first and also depending on how they take it. Agreed?”

  He slumped dishearteningly back into his seat. “Okay.”

  She giggled. “Oh come on, I’m meeting you half-way.”

  He grinned. “I like half-ways.”

  The cab pulled to a stop and they cheerfully alighted. Ashton paid the driver and then took her hand again as if he was afraid to let her go. They wheeled their bags behind them as they strolled over to the house, chuckling and whispering intimately into each other’s ears.

  “So who’s going to break the news?” she teased.

  “You.”

  “Oh, hell no.” She shook her head profusely. “Not me. Since you are so eager to jump into my bed, then it is you who should tell them.”

  “You’re right.” He nodded seriously. “Maybe I should tell them how much you’re in love with me and can’t live without me. And that it was critical I move in with you for the sake of your well-being and good health.”

  “Right.” She rolled her eyes. “Yeah, that sounds like the truth when it’s not me but you who’s wheeling his luggage into my room.” She raced ahead of him. “Last one to the house gets to tell them!”

  “Hey!” he yelled after her. He grinned and picked up speed, trying to catch her.

  She pulled open the door, beating him by a second.

  “Mom!” JR cried out cheerfully. He ran up to hug her. “Did you get something for me?”

  She kissed his forehead. “What?
No, ‘missed you’ or ‘love you’?” She faked a scowl.

  “I missed you,” he said quickly. “Did you get something?”

  “Dad did.” She tossed her head at Ashton as he walked up to join them.

  “How about a kiss for me, buddy?” He ruffled the boy’s hair.

  “Missed you, Dad,” JR said as he hugged him. “So what’d you get?”

  Ashton threw his hands up in the air. “Is that it?”

  “Impatience runs in the family.” Christy sneered at him. “I always knew he didn’t get it from my side of the family.”

  Ashton arched his brow, on the verge of debating her.

  “Ashton?” A soft voice broke into their playful teases.

  He paled, looking up in the direction of the door leading to the kitchen. “Naomi?”

  “Hi, baby.” The woman smiled as she strolled up to throw her arms around his neck. “Surprise,” she whispered and kissed him passionately on his lips.

  *****

  Ashton led Naomi into Christy’s study and then closed the door behind them.

  “What’s wrong, babe? Aren’t you happy to see me?” she asked curiously, putting her arms around him again.

  “Of course, honey,” he said, trying to sound as sincere as he could. Just shocked and fucking confused, all at the same time. “I didn’t expect you here, that’s all. When did you come?”

  “A couple of hours ago,” she whispered, kissing him on his neck. “I missed you.”

  He smiled. “I thought you would be busy these three weeks and wouldn’t have any time to miss me.”

  “Well, I did. I worked hard just so that I could return to you as soon as possible.” Her hands ran down to his crotch. “I remember you promising me that you would be waiting for me back home with a ribbon round your sweet, thick cock.”

  He clutched her hand before she could unzip his pants. “Not now, Naomi. JR might walk in at any time.”

  She sighed and stepped away. “I’m glad you found Christy. Did you get her to sign the papers?”

  “She did,” he said, taking the opportunity quickly and sitting heavily into a chair.